UB Establishes Partnership with Brock University in Ontario

By John Wood

BUFFALO, N.Y. -- The University at Buffalo has established a
major new exchange partnership with Brock University in St.
Catharines, Ontario, that calls for a variety of cooperative
research and educational initiatives, with a particular focus on
the shared border region of Western New York and Southern
Ontario.

A major feature of the new agreement is a commitment to jointly
establish a bi-national Institute on Border Studies that would be
the first joint institute of its kind established by U.S. and
Canadian universities.

The affiliation will enhance already extensive Canada-related
endeavors at UB, including the university's new Graduate
Certificate Program in Canadian studies. The agreement calls for
Brock and UB to offer cross-listed and team-taught courses, and for
faculty from each campus to develop jointly new courses and
curricula that will strengthen not only Canadian Studies, but other
programs of shared interest.

The agreement also makes provision for student and faculty
exchange between the two universities and commits the partners to
providing significant seed funding to support joint research
activities by UB and Brock faculty across a range of
disciplines.

The partnership will build on and formalize UB's longstanding
ties to Brock. These include a continuing collaboration between
Brock and the Urban Design Project of the UB School of Architecture
and Planning on regional and public policy planning for the
bi-national region.

Brock currently is developing its own regional policy institute
and is drawing on the example and expertise of the UB Regional
Institute. Brock's institute, provisionally named the Niagara
Observatory, will gather, analyze and interpret data about the
Niagara Region of Ontario for the benefit of scholars and
policymakers.

The agreement was signed on Oct. 1 by UB President John B.
Simpson, who hosted a delegation of 10 senior administrators and
faculty from Brock, and Brock President Jack N. Lightstone.

Brock has undergone rapid growth in recent years, and Lightstone
has plans for increased expansion in coming years. It enrolls some
17,000 students in seven faculties -- Applied Health Sciences,
Business, Education, Humanities, Mathematics and Science, Social
Sciences, and Graduate Studies.

UB and Brock share the distinction of being major universities
in close proximity to their respective sides of the
American-Canadian border. Border issues, including border security,
trade and investment, regional economic development, and tourism,
will continue to be among the key areas of shared interest between
the two institutions.

In his remarks at the signing ceremony, Simpson recalled a
recent visit to Brock. "I was most impressed by the Brock campus
and by the ambitious plans that President Lightstone has already
begun implementing to grow and enhance his institution while
working in close concert with the local community of St.
Catharines, Ontario, and the larger bi-national region we share,"
he said.

"At UB, we have similar aspirations not only to increase the
size and to enhance the quality of our university, but to do so in
ways that benefit the larger Western New York community," he added.
"In many respects, President Lightstone and I have similar agendas
and both of us see our universities playing a key role in the
future development and success of the bi-national region.

"Our shared commitment to exercising a leadership role in the
future development of our surrounding communities will help
strengthen and advance all of the collaborative activities that
Brock and UB undertake, and will help promote increased
understanding and cooperation between the leaders and communities
on both sides of our shared border," Simpson said.

Lightstone noted, "Brock University and the University at
Buffalo share a common commitment to partner with their respective
communities in order to spur economic, social and cultural
development.

"We have many complementary strengths and our communities face
similar challenges in an age of globalization and similar
opportunities as gateways of trade between our nations. Therefore,
both the universities and our host regions have much to gain by
deepening cooperation between Brock University and the University
at Buffalo," Lightstone added.

Also attending the signing ceremony were representatives from
the Consulate General of Canada in Buffalo and the U.S. Consulate
General in Toronto.

Representing the Canadian Consulate were Consul General Stephen
Brereton; Kerry Mitchell, program manager, political/economic
relations and public affairs; and Daniel Kolundzic, political and
economic relations officer. Nicholas Giacobbe, public affairs
officer, represented U.S. Consul General John Nay for the U.S.
Consulate in Toronto. Officials from both consulates have expressed
strong support for the new UB-Brock agreement.

The University at Buffalo is a premier research-intensive
public university, the largest and most comprehensive campus in the
State University of New York. UB's more than 28,000 students pursue
their academic interests through more than 300 undergraduate,
graduate and professional degree programs. Founded in 1846, the
University at Buffalo is a member of the Association of American
Universities.